Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #76325 in Home Improvement
• Brand: Porter-Cable
• Model: 7216

From the Manufacturer
Porter-Cable 7216 24-Inch Omnijig

Customer Reviews

Porter-Cable 7216 24
I looked at a lot of dovetail jigs and narrowed my short list to the PC 24" OmniJig and the Leigh D4. Since I was primarily interested in halfblind production dovetails, I decided on the OmniJig. When I have more time for artisan joinery, I will probably revisit the Leigh D4.

I purchased the 7216 PC OmniJig a couple of months ago and got the 110% price guarantee from Amazon. [...] had it cheaper, so Amazon matched the price + 10%.

I did not have the same problem reported in PBMFIRE's review about the template guide not fitting my router base. I use a Makita 3612C 3.25HP plunge router and the template guide fit perfectly. No modifications or new router bases were required.

The setup video is a very informational if you are not familiar with the unit's configuration. After a few trial cuts and adjustments, I was able to cut rock solid halfblind dovetails in oak. The clamps will leave marks in softwoods like pine but left no marks in the oak stock.

The only drawback with the OmniJig that I am aware of with using the halfblind template is that your joints have to be multiples of 7/8" to get the ends evenly spaced. You just have to plan accordingly when making your designs. I haven't tried the through dovetail template yet, so I cannot comment on it.

There are a couple of upgrades that I would like to see made to the OmniJig.

1) PC is placing scoring lines on some of their new templates to assist with the alignment and setup with the base. This was not done with the 24" OmniJig that I received, but I have seen it offered in advertisements for some of their other products. This would increase repeatability when switching between templates while saving a few test cuts.

2) The left and right adjustable stops could be made differently so that they have positive locks at true 90 degree angles. This would speed up configuration and switch over times. These stops could also be larger so feeding the boards would square up quicker. If the 2 boards are not squared up snugly together, the joint will have gaps in it. I have seen home made jigs added to the OmniJig to help address this issue. This modification would be nice to have as a stock option to speed up production work.

Overall it is a rock solid unit and highly recommended.

DOES WHAT I WANT IT TO DO...
I purchased this jig to make thru dovetails on wide boards for hope chests. I normally hand cut them on small boxes, just takes a minute, but on large chest's it can take quite a bit of time to get them all cut just right. This jig lets me cut them accurately, in wide boards, in a very short period of time. I have used the Leigh jig in the past (borrowed one) and it is a hell of a jig, but I don't need the versatility of that jig at this time. I just want to cut accurate thru dovetails in wide boards and man does this jig excell at that. Watching the video and doing a few practice runs are the key here. I use a smaller PC router with a d-handle and real sharp cutters. I find the smaller router does an excellant job and is easier to control. Since most of the chest's are basically the same dimension, set up has become routine and the results are excellent. I have the sliding dovetail fixture also and have used it twice to make tool boxes for hand tools. It is even easier to set up and use and gives great results. As with most tools, the omni jig is not a do all, but it will do everything I want it to do and do it well. Highly recommend.

Chip Maker
The Porter-Cable Omnijig seems to be a good solid fixture that should give years of trouble free use out of it, and even be able to hand it down to my son when I am worn out instead. The only trouble I have had, is with Porter-Cable customer service department. The unit was deliveried to me with one cracked plastic knob and one striped knob. I contacted Porter-Cable online, gave them the model number of the unit and the part numbers of the two knobs. They got back to me the next day and asked for the serial number; I got back to them with the serial number and the next day they sent me back an email stating it was incorrect. So I sent them a photo of the serial number, the next day they told me I needed to fax them the receipt. Instead I went to the local hardware store spent $2.00 to replace the broken knobs and notified Porter-Cable cutomer service that they are off my vendor list for my cabinet making business. I have numerous Porter-Cable power tools, but because of $2.00 worth of knobs I will not be adding to them.